


Dear Chikara

by hqprotectionsquad



Series: Haikyuu!! One Shots [27]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: F/M, High School, Long-Distance Friendship, Long-Distance Relationship, Pen Pals
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-10
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:15:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,420
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25190764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hqprotectionsquad/pseuds/hqprotectionsquad
Summary: One letter turns into two and Ennoshita from the other side of the nation turns out to be the best pen pal you could have ever asked for.
Relationships: Ennoshita Chikara/Reader
Series: Haikyuu!! One Shots [27]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1702609
Comments: 6
Kudos: 32





	Dear Chikara

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I am cross-posting my content from tumblr (hqprotectionsquad) to this AO3 account. I hope you all enjoy! If you liked this one shot, please leave a comment or kudos!

“You’re really still trying to find a pen pal, (Y/N)?” Atsumu asks when he peers over your shoulder. “Doesn’t that kind of stuff get a little old?” He clicks his tongue. From the corner of your eye, you see that he settles into the seat next to you, munching on a piece of onigiri. It’s lunchtime at Inarizaki and all the students are out and about the building and courtyards, but all you’re focused on is this piece of mail that you received in the morning. This is the first chance you had and you’re ready to slide a finger underneath the adhesive and open this bad boy up.

“Yes, really,” you reply pointedly. “You know I’ve wanted one since, like, middle school.” Pulling the prized letter of its sheath, you unfold the paper, pressing it hard against the desk to squash the creases.

“Can I see too?” Atsumu presses his shoulder against yours and it takes both of your hands to get him off you.

“You’re still going to look, so why do you ask?”

“I dunno. Don’t you think it’s nice of me to ask anyway?”

_Hi (Y/N),_

_My name is Ennoshita Chikara. I’m a second year at Karasuno High School in the Miyagi Prefecture—_

Your perfect letter reading is disturbed by Atsumu making noises next to you. “He’s from Karasuno! I’m just wondering if he knows anything about the volleyball team. Ya know,” he wags his finger. “Karasuno’s been building up steam. We’re gonna have to watch them, so if you could just gather some tapes on—”

“Atsumu, you’re the one interrupting my lunch, not the other way around.”

“Okay, sure you can say that, but you haven’t even touched your lunch, (Y/N). So can I have—”

“Shh!” You hold up a hand and when you don’t hear another word from him, your eyes are brought back to the paper.

_I’m a second year at Karasuno High School in the Miyagi Prefecture. I am in one of the college preparatory classes for my year. They’re hard, but I work harder. I really enjoy my anatomy class and I also like to make short films with my friends. After school, I go to volleyball practice. I’m a wing spiker, but I’m not on the court often—_

“Psst. Atsumu.” When he doesn’t look up from his phone, you tap repeatedly on his shoulder. “Hey, it says my pen pal is on the volleyball team.”

“How cute. Hey! Maybe you two can be star-crossed lovers or something like that if our teams ever face each other.”

“Shut up, Atsumu. Don’t make me tell you — _again_ — that your brother is the better twin.”

* * *

"Oi, Ennoshita! Watch this!" Nishinoya calls out to his teammate. The hour hand on the clock will be hitting 3 soon, when practice begins for the afternoon.

Ennoshita's sitting with his back to the wall and his eyes peer up from the words he's reading. He can never trust Nishinoya and Tanaka to do something together at the same time because they'll get someone hurt — that or they'll praise Kiyoko as a goddess.

Nishinoya runs to jump onto Tanaka's back, and in the split second that Ennoshita looks back down, they fall like bowling pins and crash to the ground.

"Nishinoya, Tanaka, what are you doing?" He abandons the letter, placing it to the side, before standing up to scold these two teenagers that act like children.

Nishinoya and Tanaka shake Ennoshita as they laugh at his stern eyebrows and his hands on his hips. Out of the corner of his eye, Nishinoya looks at the place his friend just sat and walks over.

"Hey, what's this?" Nishinoya asks as he picks up the paper. It bounces as he raises it up, with the tri-fold creases flowing up and down. His question is purely innocent, but it’s easily turned into a teasing nature when he sees the weight it holds in Ennoshita’s life.

"Wait, don't look!" Ennoshita rushes with his hand outstretched.

"' _Dear Chikara, my name is (Y/N). I’m also your age. I live in the Hyogo Prefecture_ ,'" Nishinoya announces to the world and when Ennoshita grabs for it, Tanaka takes the hint and gets to the letter first.

"What kind of letter is this?" Tanaka laughs while running across the gym. The baldie has always been ahead of Ennoshita in athletics, and even more so in pranks. "Is this a sexy letter? Chikara, I didn't know you were into that!" Their chuckles resound throughout the gym and now that the two knuckleheads are involved, the third years are trying to settle them down.

Finally, Daichi gets a hold of the letter and all Ennoshita wants is to run to the storage room with his letter and just sit there, recovering from his overworked heart. “Get ready. Ukai’s coming soon and he’ll make us run more if he sees you going around like that.” Sure enough, the captain’s words make them shudder from the chills and they stop moving so much. “Here, you should probably put that away before they rip it.”

“Thank you.” With a shy grin, Ennoshita takes one last look at it before putting it with his water bottle and towel.

_I’m really glad you sent me a letter, so I’ll continue to send one as long as you do. I’m from Inarizaki High. According to one of the boys on the volleyball team that I manage, we might see you at some point. Maybe if you reach Nationals._

Sure, it’s only your first letters to each other, but Ennoshita wants to do anything in his power so that he will be able to see you in person.

* * *

And so it goes. You chase the mailman on weekends to see if the mail came in, but not just any mail — a specific cream-colored envelope written to you with the return address starting with the name Ennoshita Chikara. You hear from Ennoshita that he waits for his dad to come home from work with the letters from the mailbox. He laughs because you say all you have at home are pink envelopes, but he’ll snatch it right away to run up the stairs to his bedroom. He’ll cherish the first time he reads the letter, because he says it will ever be new again except for the first time. He can read it again to reference things for the next time he writes to you, but “it’s just not the same.”

You learn tiny things about him. Tiny things that make it easy to want to get to know him better, and those tiny things would probably make you fall in love with him if you knew him in person. But it’s different, isn’t it? Shouldn’t you be learning how he likes his ramen or curry on a date together?

Still, you’ve learned that being pen pals with him is better than not knowing him at all.

_Chikara, are you afraid of something? I think what I’ve learned over the years is that I can’t afford to be afraid when I’m going to die one day. There’s no point in being scared someone might not like my company or avoiding an activity because I might not be good at it. I might as well try, right?_

_Thank you for your letter before. I think what you said cheered me up. I’m glad you enjoy keeping your teammates straight as much as I do with the boys on the Inarizaki team. Listen, since I’m learning how to be fearless, here is my number. When you read this part for the first time. Call me, I want to hear your voice._

* * *

He does call you. He doesn’t bother thinking of drafting another letter or how to respond to your question about fearing the world.

As he sits on the edge of his bed, Ennoshita taps in the digits you provided at the end of the letter. Even your numbers are a combination of neat and messy, but it’s all legible. After pressing call, it rings and rings and rings, up until the point he’s afraid you’re not available. But he wants to stay true to what you wrote and what you wrote is to call you when you see the letter.

It goes through and he’s bold enough to offer a hello but he’s met with silence. You’re probably there, so he says it again and even adds, “It’s me, Chikara.” Finally, you aren’t answering back, so Ennoshita finishes by telling you, “I know you’re there, (Y/N), but it’s okay if you won’t talk to me. I’ll trust that you’ll come to me in your own time.” Reluctantly, he hits the end call button.

* * *

You want to scream. Shout. Open your window and expel expletives into the neighborhood, not caring about who bothers to hear. Literally do anything you can because you’re a complete idiot. You’re the one who gave him your phone number, yet you don’t even respond? What kind of loser are you to do that?

From your bed, you rise to your feet and start to pace the length of your room for what seems like hours, but in reality was just a few minutes. You realize the root problem is that you’re scared of him judging you. You don’t know him outside all of the detailed and wonderful notes he mails you every week or so, but who knows if he’s completely different than the person he presents on paper?

But...if you don’t call him back now, will you ever grow the courage to do it again?

After all, you’re an Inarizaki student. You might not always need reminders of the past, but as for the future, you’re always up for a new challenge, even if it scares you because you’ve embarrassed yourself.

Maybe he felt this way when you didn’t say anything when he was on the line, but that doesn’t mean you should just leave it at that. You don’t take anything else for chance and just go for it.

You’re back to pacing your room, but at least now you’re dialing the digits of his phone number. “Hey Chikara, I know you’re probably there since you picked up, but I just want to say I’m a total idiot for picking up earlier and not saying anything. I’m pretty embarrassed about it and I’m sorry for all of that. Like come on, I was the one who sent you my number, but—”

You pause in your steps, hearing something unfamiliar, something that isn’t just you rambling your head off. “Chikara, is that you? Did you just laugh?”

“Yeah.”

“Hey, so you were listening this whole time?”

Another laugh comes and it flows out like smooth butter dissolving into a searing pan, or like wind on the perfect summer day, or really anything that is smooth. It’s perfect. It’s him.

“Yeah, I was. Sorry for not responding right away. I just wanted to hear what your voice sounded like.” When you hear this, you’re not only flattered, but you also are forced to take a look at yourself. Was this part of the reason why you didn’t want to take a step forward and speak back to him during his first call?

There’s an awkward silence and you’re wondering if he’s still on the line because he’s bored and has nothing else to do except to talk to a pen pal who’s on the other side of the nation.

“I—”

“I—”

“Sorry, you first.”

“Oh, I was just going to say that I really like your voice.” Your confession brings about a red color to dust over your cheeks and you can’t even deny the way you feel when you hear his calm voice flickering out from your speaker.

As if your face couldn’t get any more colorful, Chikara quips back, “I could say the same about yours.” You slap a hand over your mouth and then your other for reinforcement as you mutter incoherent things into your flesh. You roll your lips into your mouth to help you stop smiling, but you can’t. If you were to live in a particular moment forever, you’d choose this one.

Now, you can’t stop laughing. Between the jokes he lands, and the descriptions of his own volleyball team, it’s finally nice to get to know someone who isn’t trying to be your friend as a way to get to Atsumu, or trying to get your math homework—not that it’s any good, anyway.

What you don’t notice outside of your bubble of this phone call is that the sun outside your bedroom window has begun to set and descend farther into the horizon. You don’t notice that your room has become exponentially dimmer without the warmth of the sun; your desk lamp is no match for the glowing star.

Soon enough, with your ear pressed against your phone and your head on your pillow, everything feels right. Maybe this is dream land, or as close to it as you can get.

“Knock, knock” is what your dad says before coming into your room. It’s annoying, but at least he doesn’t barge into your room like Atsumu and Osamu would when your parents let them into the house. “You have to get off your phone now; it’s nearly one in the morning and you still have school tomorrow.”

“Okay, dad. Thanks.” You can tell he wants to ask who you’ve been laughing with on the phone, but maybe he’ll avoid asking you the question. The last thing he wants to know is that his daughter’s interested in another person. The last thing you want him to know is that this person has been sending you letters for the past three months. 

The door is closed softly, and you chuckle. There’s a shakiness to your laughter that hurts your soul. “You heard my dad.”

“I know. It was really wonderful talking to you, (Y/N).” Before you can put in a word, he continues, “I want to talk to you more, if that’s okay with you.”

“That’s okay. That’s more than okay.” You’re truly privileged to have found your perfect pen pal. You want to start spewing goodbye’s because otherwise, you’ll never find the heart to hit the end call button. “Hey, Chikara?”

“Yeah?” He responds almost too quickly and this brings about another laugh for you both.

“Make sure you work really hard, okay? I want to see you at Nationals.”

“I want to see you too. We’ll be there.”


End file.
